DAR ES SALAAM, May 21 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania's Parliamentary Standing Committee on Lands, Natural Resources and Tourism said on Monday a decision by the government to revoke tourist hunting permits has discouraged investment in the tourism industry.
Reacting to budget proposals for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, members of the committee told the National Assembly in the capital Dodoma that the move also violates wildlife laws and is a setback to the development of the tourism industry.
Nape Nnauye, the chairperson of the committee, said the decision to revoke the tourist hunting permits is against the 2009 wildlife act and its regulations, which clearly state the processes to follow in revoking a hunting licenses to someone who goes against the laws.
"Section (38) of the Wildlife Conservation Act states that the lasting period for a hunting license is five years, but the ministry revoked the licenses three years before the lawful tenure," he said.
"An analysis by the committee has established that various statements by the ministry on the hunting blocks were against laws and not only did the statements discourage investors but they also subjected the government to losses in revenues," said Nnauye.
Nnauye told the House that the unexpected decisions by the government made investors in the tourism industry to withdraw their investments, adding that the investors had already surrendered 81 out of 159 hunting blocks to the government.
In October 2017, Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Hamisi Kigwangallah revoked all tourist hunting permits, saying the permits would be re-applied through auction.
In September 2015, the Tanzanian government was advised to suspend tourist hunting but it said it did not believe the practice had fueled wildlife poaching.
Former Tanzania Hunting Operators Association chairman Eric Pasanisi said the proposed suspension on hunting tourism will adversely affect wildlife conservation, as 65 percent of conservation funds came from tourist hunting.